lincoln`s new salem

LINCOLN'S NEW SALEM
If you listen, you can hear the blacksmith's anvil ringing
through the village and horses' hooves clopping by ....
WRITTEN & PHOTOGRAPHED BY PAULA CARTE•
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"Neiv Salem was a simple village,
but it had a huge impact on one
of the greatest presidents of all
time.
LINCOLN'S NEW SALEM COMES TO LIFE
Passing through the small towns of central Illinois, past the corn fields and prairie
preserves, to Lincoln's New Salem is like searching for Brigadoon, that mythical
Scottish town that only appears once every 100 years. As visitors round the bend and
come upon the forested stretch of land where New Salem sits, it is as if the frontier
village where Abraham Lincoln spent his early adulthood magically materializes, and
like Brigadoon, it brings with it a life from over 100 years ago.
Located about 20 miles northwest of Springfield along the Sangamon River, the reconstructed village is made up of 22 buildings, including a blacksmith shop, a tavern,
a school, a carding mill, and 12 cabins. The historic site is located on the exact spot
where the town once stood, reconstructed during the Great Depression by the Civilian
Conservation Corps. Many of the replica buildings are erected on the original foundations and one cabin, the Onstot Cooper Shop, is original to
the town. The Visitor's Center is complete with a small
museum and movie theater.
"So many people, particularly kids, don't understand what
life was like during this period in history," said Site Manager
Tim Guinan. "Education is an important component of what
we do." Walking the path that meanders from house to
house, visitors meet the locals, living history interpreters
eager to explain what life was like in the iSso's when Illinois
was still a new state. Guests can stop in for a chat with
William Berry, Lincoln's business partner, or meet Mentor
Graham, who ran the local "blab" school where children
learned by reciting their lessons out loud. If you listen, you
can hear the blacksmith's anvil ringing through the village
and horses' hooves clopping by, all sounds of a busy
Gathering Turnips
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commercial village ready to make its mark in the new state. Little did villagers know
that they would be remembered years later simply for knowing one man, the tall and
lanky young postmaster known as Abe.
LINCOLN FINDS HIS WAY
"He read a lot, told a lot of stories," said business partner William Berry of Lincoln
while standing behind the counter of the Berry-Lincoln store, filled with cast iron pal
and clay jugs. "Lincoln checked the books every night. Once, he realized he'd overcharged a lady for thread. Walked all the way out to her farm to take her the change.
Got there just about supper time." The interpreter playing Berry winks. These are
the sorts of stories that continue to circulate on the streets of historic New Salem,
stories that bring Lincoln to life while adding to his legend.
It was 1831 and Lincoln was 22 years old when he arrived in New Salem, having been
offered a job as a clerk in a store. Lincoln was 28 when he left. Within that short timehe clerked, split rails, served as deputy surveyor, considered becoming a blacksmithwent into business, failed, and ran for office. He was, as he once called himself, ''a
floating piece of driftwood." But it was also in New Salem that Lincoln began to study
the law seriously. He joined the town's debating society, served as a captain in the
Above: Lincoln received an appointment as
Postmaster of New Salem on May 7,1833,
He retained this position until the post
office was relocated to Petersburg on May
30,1836.
Right: A docent tends the fire at the Henry
Onstot Residence.
Black Hawk War, and was given his first government job: postmaster. "New Salem
was a simple village, but it had a huge impact on one of the greatest presidents of all
time," said Guinan.
Lincoln ran for Illinois General Assembly in 1832 and lost. He went on to try again
in 1834 and 1836, winning a seat both times. When the assembly adjourned in the
spring of 1837, Lincoln returned to New Salem only to find the town beginning to
decline. Excited by the prospect of a new life in Springfield, a city he was hoping
would soon be the state's capital, Lincoln borrowed a
horse and packed up his few belongings.
VILLAGE LIFE
"There was a lot of giving and sharing of responsibilities,"
said Jane Carrington, New Salem's Site Interpreter,
explaining how the difficulties in early America caused
folks to band together. While speaking to visitors in
the Rutledge Tavern, she noted that opportunities on
Above: Isaac Gulihur Residence.
Right: An early rope bed and cradle
in the Martin Waddell house.
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the frontier were bountiful, but challenges could be life threatening and therefore
many families traveled together in clans. "At least nine people would have shared
these two rooms and the loft," she said, pointing to the space where visitors were
standing. "And during the day the same rooms were used for the tavern."
Ash hoppers for cultivating lye and root cellars for storing fruits and vegetables dot
the landscape of New Salem, reminding visitors that frontier life meant nothing could
be wasted. When asked what she has learned by spending time in the early igth century,
Carrington said, "How hard life was, especially for women." She went on to quote the
rhyme: a man works from sun to sun, a woman's work is never done. Exhaustion was
one of the leading causes of death for women on the prairie, who on average had
seven children in their lifetime and expected to see at least one of them die.
Consulting a map sketched by one of the founding residents, letters, and drawings,
the New Salem Lincoln League (the nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving
the village) has attempted to make the town as authentic as possible. Gardens are
planted with heirloom tomatoes, turnips, and potatoes. Houses and shops are filled
with period furniture and tools, many actually used by the New Salem people.
Large cooking fireplace
in the Rutledge Tavern.
New Salem had a relatively short life. It was founded in 1828 and by 1840 it was
gone, the buildings dismantled and moved or sold for lumber. The politics of a new
state proved detrimental to New Salem, which disbanded when Petersburg, a town
only two miles away, was named county seat. As a living history village, New Salem
has lasted much longer, giving visitors insight into the early life of a state that would
go on to become known as the Land of Lincoln.
Lincoln's New Salem
State Historic Site
15588 History Lane
Petersburg, IL 62675
(217) 632-4000
wwwJincolnsnevpsalem.com
Above: Tools of the trade
in Henry Onstot's Cooper
shop.
Right: The Trent
brothers cabin.
Paula Carter is a freelance writer from Geneseo,
Illinois and we are happy to have her join our family
here at A Simple Life.
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